When you are starting out a business or looking to expand and promote your current business, a savvy business manager will really take a long-term look at his or her goals. It is important to think like others in the chain of your business: other managers, staff, and customers. A business owner truly needs to see the bigger picture in order to be successful, not just focus on short-term goals without any real objective and strategy.
1.Will your managers or business partners agree with your ideas and see the long-term benefits?
If you need to convince another party to invest in your idea or to see what you are trying to accomplish in the long run, you have to communicate effectively. People do not read minds, and no one thinks that you are a genius to believe your word automatically. Make presentation. Actually have a presentation! There is no sense in listening to your talking if you are not polished and organized enough to present a short-term and long-term goal analysis for your company that will appeal to all of the variety of interests in your team. If you are alone in your top management position, make it a point to think beyond the desperate profit margin you are trying to make quickly. Think in months and years, not days and weeks.
2.Does your staff believe in your product and services?
Many companies suffer from poor internal customers. You can’t sell your business to another person if you are using people at the front-line that don’t even know your goals. Even worse, why hire and keep an employee who has been made aware of the company’s goals and proceeds to disregard them? Many business owners fall into the pitfall of feeling bad to fire staff, especially when the economy is bad. Yet, there is no point in keeping someone who is not bringing in results. Be careful not to fire someone who is working hard within the limited resources that you provide! You need to truly have a fair analysis of your staff and act accordingly. If staff needs training or workshops and professional development, be a good employer and provide these for them before taking unfair actions. Good employers have loyal employees who are willing to work hard. If you don’t have loyal employees, they will do your business no good. Your priority as an employer is to keep your internal customer – your staff- happy. If they are not happy, they will make your real customers unhappy.
3.Would you do business with yourself?
It is amazing how many business owners do not use commonsense within their own businesses while they have demanding customer habits for others. If you can’t afford what you are selling then, how will you pitch it to someone else? If you have no need for your service, no one else likely will. A true manager knows the demographics of his or her target customers. More importantly, a business owner knows how to make changes to appeal to potential buyers quickly and effectively. Flexibility is essential for any service and product to keep up with the changing market.
These three concepts are general ideas to help you look at the various levels in your business. It is important to consider all of the people involved in your industry when you are creating a business plan or trying something new. You have to have a support system and a team environment, because if you are a lone ship, you will sink and no one will notice or care.
